He Lives
by Lauren Wagner
Summary: What if LS Kurt lived?
1. Default Chapter

Author's Note: This is for Kladyelf, who kept putting the idea in my head. LS Kurt isn't done yet!  
  
*** "Drop down your weapons!" Hauptmann Englande ordered. "Turn off the Phoenix and throw the rapiers and daggers over here!" They did so swiftly, the blades gliding over. Looking down at the weapons, Hauptmann Englande smiled up at Excalibur.  
  
"Now let him go!" Nightcrawler said.  
  
"All right." Hauptmann Englande nodded.  
  
Before anyone could stop him, he snapped SkyElf's neck and SkyElf's body crumpled at his feet.  
  
Or at least, he wanted that to happen.  
  
Instead, Hauptmann Englande found himself holding nothing but a cloud of purple brimstone. Turning around he saw a flash of SkyElf before he slashed him across the face, blinding him forever.  
  
Screaming, Hauptmann Englande stumbled backwards, his hands over his bleeding face. Laughing, SkyElf kicked him in the stomach, knocking him to the ground.  
  
"Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you!" he said, his rapiers in hand and ready.  
  
"SkyElf, lower your weapons." Nightcrawler said, walking up slowly. SkyElf looked over at Nightcrawler and he frowned a bit, flicking his tail at Hauptmann Englande.  
  
"Why shouldn't I kill him? After all of the problems he has caused us?" he asked.  
  
"Because killing him won't change anything in the past." Nightcrawler said calmly. "If we send him back like this, I think it will send a louder message than a dead body." SkyElf frowned, looking away.  
  
"What do Meggan and StarPryde say?" he asked, looking up at the two.  
  
"I think sending him back crippled with hurt more than dead." StarPryde said. "Because it leaves the Reich with the idea that we can cripple anything they send at us!"  
  
"Yes, but he has to clean up your city first." Meggan of the Reich world added. "I'll help him because it's also my fault it's so messed up." Sighing, SkyElf sheathed his rapiers and he nodded a bit, poking Hauptmann Englande with his tail lightly.  
  
"You're lucky I listen to my comrades, Hauptmann Englande." He said. "I would rather have you hanging upside down with your guts dangling out of your body!" ***  
Hauptmann Englande and Meggan cleaned up the city, but Hauptmann Englande was sent back alone with a note written by the three former members of the Lightning Squad; telling the Reich and Reichminister Moira that they were never going to go back and they would kill any others that they dared to send to Earth 616.  
  
"I still can't believe he tried that." SkyElf once said as they ate dinner a week after the attack. "I think he forgot I could teleport! Or perhaps he thought that I had the same problem you used to have, Nightcrawler, and that I could only teleport once a day without any strains!"  
  
"It doesn't matter anymore." StarPryde said, looking at him with sparkling eyes. "We're finally free completely of Hauptmann Englande and the Reich." Looking over at her, SkyElf smiled and he placed an arm around her shoulders, hugging her tightly and kissing her on her brow lightly.  
  
"Yes," he agreed. "We're finally free!" 


	2. 2

StarPryde was standing on the balcony of the lighthouse, looking up at the pale moon in the star filled sky. Sighing, she hugged herself, tilting her head to one side.  
  
She smiled and leaned back when she felt SkyElf's arms wrap around her middle gently in a hug.  
  
"What are you thinking about?" he asked, pressing his lips against the side of her neck lightly. StarPryde laughed softly as his lips tickled her.  
  
"I'm actually thinking of what to name our child." She said.  
  
"Don't do it." SkyElf said seriously. "Unless you are thinking of our child's true name, don't suddenly pick one out."  
  
"Another Romani tradition?" StarPryde asked, cocking an eyebrow. When SkyElf nodded, she laughed softly, shaking her head.  
  
"Isn't it also a tradition to keep the pregnant woman isolated from everyone else because her pregnancy makes her [i]marime?[/i]" she asked.  
  
"Yes, but I don't hold with every tradition that my people have." SkyElf said with a lazy flick of his tail. "I remember one time my friend Jutta was left alone in her tent, and I could hear her sobbing from the loneliness. All she had for company was the birthing nurse."  
  
"Sometimes your people can be cruel with their traditions." StarPryde said, frowning at him a bit. "Imagine leaving a pregnant woman alone like that!"  
  
"Have I left you to the same fate?" SkyElf asked, raising his eyebrows gently. "And besides, I went to visit her when everyone wasn't looking. I think I'm completely [i]marime[/i] from that!" he added with a laugh.  
  
"Will you be there when the baby is born?" she asked. When SkyElf shook his head slowly, she pulled out of his hug and she frowned at him, her hands on her hips.  
  
"Why not? Another tradition?" she asked. When SkyElf nodded again, she growled softly. "You know, you're really starting to annoy me with these traditions of yours!" she said. "I don't make you do everything Jews do! You still have your foreskin and everything!"  
  
"I'm sorry." SkyElf said, shrugging helplessly. "But even if I did go, what use would I be at the birth? I would just be standing there helplessly watching another life come out of you!" Giving up, StarPryde sighed and rested against SkyElf again, wrapping her arms around his middle.  
  
"Sometimes you give me such grief!" she laughed helplessly. Smiling, SkyElf swayed as he hugged her, kissing her star.  
  
"But you know that's what you love the most about me." He pointed out. ***  
SkyElf sat in a room by himself, smoking cigarette after cigarette helplessly.  
  
StarPryde had gone into labor about six hors ago, and Moira had been coming in every hour to tell him how she was doing.  
  
She had stopped coming about half an hour ago.  
  
SkyElf was out of cigarettes. Swearing softly in German, Kurt got to his feet and he started to walk around the room, his tail jerking and swishing around to show his agitation.  
  
Finally, SkyElf threw himself onto a couch and he covered his eyes with an arm, groaning to himself in German that he hoped she was all right. ***  
Nightcrawler came in an hour later, finding SkyElf hanging upside down on the ceiling by his tail, his hair undone and wild from him pulling on it. Chuckling, Nightcrawler shook his head and he sat down on the chair.  
  
"It is finished." He said as SkyElf leapt down.  
  
"How is she?" SkyElf asked, unable to calm his tail as it jerked from side to side rapidly. Nightcrawler smiled, tilting his head to one side.  
  
"StarPryde is fine." He said. "As are the children. Both of them are fine."  
  
"Oh that's..."  
  
SkyElf thought about what Nightcrawler had just said.  
  
"The children?" he repeated. "Both of them? But..." Nightcrawler couldn't help but laugh at the flustered look on SkyElf's face.  
  
"Moira found a second one just before StarPryde started to give birth." He explained. "You have a son and a daughter." SkyElf sat with a thud in a chair, shaking his head slowly.  
  
"Gott im Himmel." He whispered. "Twins?" Nightcrawler nodded, still smiling at him.  
  
"Both of them are beautiful." He said. "When are you going to perform the claiming ritual?" he asked.  
  
"I'd do it right now if I could." SkyElf said. "But I think it would be better to wait a bit. I don't think Moira would agree to placing babies a few hours old on the floor do you?"  
  
"No, but I have a feeling you will end up ripping out all of your hair waiting to finally see them." Nightcrawler said with a laugh. "Try to calm down, mein freund." ***  
Two weeks later, SkyElf and StarPryde performed the claiming ritual on their children Kurt and Johanna Wagner.  
  
Moira had gone absolutely bonkers when it was even hinted that the children would be put on the BARE floor. SkyElf was afraid that he would never see his children as the Scot raged and threatened to bash his skull in if he even thought of having them left on the floor like that.  
  
She was soothed when they said they would put the children on a cushion to be on the safe side.  
  
They decided to do it in the lounge, where the atmosphere was quiet and calming. SkyElf stood waiting by the cushion, holding two pieces of red yarn as his tail swayed side to side lazily.  
  
When StarPryde came in, she was holding too bundles in her arms. Smiling up at SkyElf, she gently placed the two on the cushion, making sure not to jostle them too much. With that, she stepped back and looked up at him.  
  
Slowly, SkyElf crouched down and he took hold of both bundles, cradling them in his arms. With his tail, he lightly brushed away some of the covers to see their faces and his heart melted almost immediately at the sight of them.  
  
His son was the same color as his father, but his facial features were those of his mother with his yellow eyes looking like a "normal" person's, except for the tiny tail that curled out from under the covers. His daughter on the other hand had the same skin tone as her mother, but her facial features were those of her father, including her hands and feet.  
  
With his tail, SkyElf carefully tied the pieces of red yarn lightly around each of his children's necks, showing that he claimed them as his.  
  
"They're beautiful." He whispered as StarPryde rested her head on his shoulder lightly, looking down at her babies.  
  
"They take after their mother." He said, turning to her with a smile. Smiling, StarPryde pressed her brow against SkyElf's and he returned it, closing his eyes in happiness. 


	3. 3

SkyElf and StarPryde raised Johanna and Kurt as best as they could; sending them to a good school and helping them train so that they could one day be part of Excalibur to fight.  
  
SkyElf taught his son Kurt how to use the blade and he promised that when he was old enough; he would get his rapiers as his inherited gift on his eighteenth birthday; but only if he studied hard in the art of fencing.  
  
StarPryde taught Johanna all about martial arts and how to use computers. Johanna had a knack for technology and soon she was doing better than Shadowcat and StarPryde put together! Moira was teaching her in the end before she even reached fifteen!  
  
There were a few bumps in the road for them, and they paved over them with promises of answers when their children were old enough to fully understand. They didn't want their children growing up with the knowledge that their parents once helped Nazis slaughter innocent men, women, and children.  
  
SkyElf had been tempted to say something when his daughter came home sobbing one day though when they were in the fifth grade. ***  
Johanna had come home sobbing, running right into StarPryde's surprised and worried arms.  
  
"What's the matter?" SkyElf asked, tilting his head to one side in concern. Johanna was too upset to speak, hiccupping badly soon enough.  
  
"I'll try to calm her down." StarPryde said, starting to take her daughter to the bathroom. "Go ask Kurt if he knows what has happened." Nodding, SkyElf waited for his son to come in a few minutes later.  
  
"Why is your sister so upset?" he asked, his arms crossed over his chest. "Did someone bully her in school?" Kurt shook his head, putting his backpack down.  
  
"It wasn't like that, dad." He said. "It was our lesson in school today." SkyElf cocked an eyebrow, his tail swirling around his legs slowly.  
  
"What was the lesson?" he asked slowly, thinking he all ready knew the answer.  
  
"We're learning about the Holocaust." Kurt said, holding out a book to his father. Opening the book, SkyElf found himself looking at pictures of people who looked more like walking stick figures. As he turned the pages, the pictures became more intense with piles of shoes and glasses showing how many people were being killed.  
  
"She showed us a video of people being buried in large holes." Kurt said. "Johanna started to cry when we saw the survivors walking. You could see all of their bones and then..."  
  
"I know about the Holocaust." SkyElf said softly, closing the book. Looking down at his son, he crouched down and rested a hand on his shoulder lightly.  
  
"How are you feeling?" he asked. Kurt bit his lower lip, his tail curling around his leg.  
  
"I was sad." He said.  
  
"And you're not sad now?" SkyElf asked.  
  
"I'm still sad, but I'm angry too." Kurt said. "Why did they hate our people so much? They killed Jews and the Romani in those camps!"  
  
"I know they did." SkyElf sighed, standing up. "But it's all right now. It will never happen again." ***  
That night, SkyElf was fuming in the bedroom. StarPryde sat on their bed, trying to calm her husband down.  
  
"They were going to learn about it eventually." She tried.  
  
"Videos!" SkyElf growled, his tail slashing the air. "Their teacher showed videos the first day! She shouldn't have done that! Johanna came home crying! Mein Gott!" SkyElf sighed, finally getting in bed.  
  
"I think we need to talk to their teacher about this." He said.  
  
"Just don't cause any problems." StarPryde warned knowingly. SkyElf laughed helplessly.  
  
"When have I ever caused problems?" he asked. ***  
For the remainder of the Holocaust unit, Johanna and Kurt were taught at home. SkyElf had tried to remain calm with the teacher, but the woman was starting to get nasty, saying that their children couldn't stay sheltered forever in hopeless fantasies.  
  
The woman was lucky to be alive.  
  
They taught their children gently, showing them mild videos and photos. Kurt and Johanna learned all about the Holocaust and more and when they went back to school; they were ahead of their classmates.  
  
Johanna was still sensitive with the issue, but Kurt's feelings were of deep-rooted hatred. He hated the Nazis for what they had done, and even though his father and mother said some soldiers were forced into service; he hated all of them.  
  
Every last one of them. 


	4. 4

It was no secret that Marvel was making comic books about their adventures. The thing Kurt and Johanna found odd was that SkyElf and StarPryde were not in them.  
  
Nightcrawler kept issues nine through eleven hidden; after he and the others saw that they only showed the Lightning Squad as evil. ***  
It was a few days before they turned eighteen, and Kurt and Johanna were feeling restless.  
  
"Johanna, try to hold the ladder steady, bitte." SkyElf said. "I don't want to fall off!"  
  
"Sorry!" Johanna said, adjusting her footing slowly as she tried to hold the ladder steady.  
  
"We're running low on tape." Brian announced, looking over at Nightcrawler.  
  
"Kurt, I should have more in my room." Nightcrawler said. "I'm a little busy at the moment!"  
  
"Come on, Johanna!" Kurt laughed, grabbing her and teleporting away.  
  
With a shout, SkyElf leapt off of the ladder and landed in a crouch before the ladder hit the ground. Sighing, he shook his head.  
  
"That son of mine!" he growled, smiling helplessly. ***  
"Check his desk." Kurt said, opening one of Nightcrawler's drawers. Nodding, Johanna started to look through a pile of papers. She took out a few folders and pamphlets before she found a few new packs of scotch tape. Smiling, she turned to Kurt, who was looking at something in the drawer.  
  
"I found the tape!" she said, waving it over her head. When Kurt didn't turn around, she frowned and walked up, resting a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Kurt?" she asked.  
  
"Look at this!" Kurt said, holding something out to her. Cocking her head to one side, Johanna put the tape down and she sat on the bed, looking at what Kurt handed her.  
  
It was a comic book.  
  
Issue nine of Excalibur called 'Weird War Three' ***  
"Where are those children of yours?" StarPryde asked as she looked around the finished gymnasium. "They were supposed to bring us some tape."  
  
"What do you mean my children?" SkyElf asked. "You mean to say that every time they do something wrong; they're mine?"  
  
"Exactly." StarPryde nodded with a smile. SkyElf tilted his head to one side, thinking about this for a moment. Breaking into a smile, he shrugged.  
  
"Oh well." He said.  
  
They went into the kitchen for some of Rory's good coffee, finding some of the others all ready there with their own mugs.  
  
SkyElf couldn't help but cringe as Moira slurped hers up.  
  
"I swear, Moira! You get worse every..."  
  
Kurt teleported into the room with Johanna just outside of the doorway; holding something rolled up in one hand.  
  
"Where were you two?" Shadowcat asked, smiling at them. "You were supposed to get tape for us! We had to use gum!" Kurt didn't say anything, slowly walking up to his father.  
  
Meggan and Fay looked at each other, sensing the waves of anger that were coming off the boy.  
  
"Kurt..." Fay started softly.  
  
"What's the matter, son?" SkyElf asked, putting his mug down. No one even realized Kurt was moving his arm until he suddenly struck SkyElf across the face with the rolled up comics in his one hand, making his head rock to one side.  
  
SkyElf looked at Kurt in surprise, touching the side of his face lightly.  
  
"What the..?" Kurt struck him again and again until Brian grabbed his arm and pulled him back before he let go.  
  
"What's the matter with you?" Brian asked.  
  
"Why don't you explain this, dad!" Kurt screamed, holding out the comics to him.  
  
"What?" Kurt threw them on the table, and Nightcrawler cursed himself mentally when he saw which ones they were.  
  
"Kurt, let mom and dad explain..." Johanna tried weakly. She shut her mouth as she watched her brother's body tremble in suppressed rage. Even Meggan and Fay were starting to change due to the strong emotions being thrown off. They started to turn black and ugly with large sores and spikes poking out of their faces and arms.  
  
"You and mom were Nazis!" Kurt said, jabbing SkyElf in the chest with his tail, leaving bruises. "You and mom slaughtered your own people in your world!"  
  
"Kurt..." SkyElf tried. His nose started to bleed when Kurt slapped him again.  
  
"Kurt, stop this." Nightcrawler tried. "Let them explain! You don't understand..."  
  
"There's nothing to explain!" Kurt said. "As far as I'm concerned, I don't have any parents and I don't want to be around assholes like you who would befriend them either!" Before any one could stop him, Kurt teleported out of the kitchen and into his room, where he started to pack his things.  
  
Numbly, SkyElf fell into a chair, staring at nothing in particular. As Fay went to try and talk to Kurt, StarPryde hugged her husband around the shoulders, burying her tears in his fur. Closing his eyes, SkyElf hugged her back, his own tears starting to come down.  
  
Johanna stayed at the doorway, looking very uncomfortable about the whole situation.  
  
"Maybe he won't leave." She said slowly. "Then you can tell us why Marvel made those. Then maybe we can be happy again..." ***  
"Get away from me." Kurt snarled as he headed for the door. "You were with them."  
  
"Let us explain, Kurt." Fay said. "Marvel only showed one side of the whole issue..."  
  
"I don't want to hear it!" Kurt snapped, turning on her. "You could have fought them! You didn't have to be Nazis like that! I hate you and I hate my parents. Now get away from me!" Her body was starting to hurt from the emotions Kurt was sending out, and he knew that. Narrowing his eyes, he made them stronger, and Fay was forced to run from him before she went mad.  
  
"I don't need to stay here." He said to himself, throwing his bags onto a motorboat. "I'm getting as far away as possible from this!" Ignoring Johanna as she tried to run down and stop him, Kurt started the boat and he roared off, leaving his family in a spray of water. 


	5. 5

Author's Note: #something# = Dragon tongue ***  
Lockheed climbed onto the windowsill, looking over his shoulder at everyone in the kitchen. Sighing softly, he spread his wings and he soared off to do something he hoped would help them out. ***  
Johanna sat in a chair across from her mother and father, looking at them as seriously as possible under the circumstances. She wished she had gone with her brother a few times, but she knew she had to give her parents a chance to explain everything, so here she was, sitting with a cup of hot cocoa with her parents and the rest of Excalibur in the kitchen.  
  
"Start from the beginning." She said softly, holding her mug in both hands. SkyElf and StarPryde looked at each other for a moment, and then SkyElf started to speak. ***  
"I need a one way ticket to New York." The woman at the counter looked at the young man standing in front of her and she cocked an eyebrow slightly.  
  
"For which flight?" she asked. Kurt frowned, looking up at the sign.  
  
"Whichever is the soonest." He said. Nodding, the woman started to type it into her computer.  
  
"Aren't you that son to two members of Excalibur?" she asked as he paid for his ticket.  
  
"..."  
  
"I understand. You want to try and keep a low profile." She said, winking at him with a smile. "I'll tell everyone to let you have your privacy." Kurt pocketed his ticket before he shouldered his bags again.  
  
"Danke." He said, turning and walking off to go and sit down to wait for his flight to arrive. ***  
Lockheed was off in a forest nearby; hanging out with his larger version from the same world SkyElf and the others had come from. After all of the adventures with the Cross-Time Caper, Big Lockheed had decided to go and live in a forest by himself, wanting to have his privacy.  
  
That didn't mean he didn't like getting visited by his little doppelganger a few times though.  
  
He had been dozing off in the light of the sun when his little friend came, looking like something was very wrong. Frowning slightly, Big Lockheed rolled onto his feet and he watched his little friend land in front of him, tilting his head to one side as he let out a low growl; speaking in the ancient tongue of the Dragon.  
  
#What is the matter, little friend?# he asked, lowering his head slowly.  
  
#It's about Kurt.# Little Lockheed said, his tail flicking slightly. Big Lockheed frowned a bit.  
  
#Which Kurt? Nightcrawler, SkyElf, or the son of SkyElf who is yet to choose a codename?# he asked.  
  
#The son of SkyElf# Little Lockheed sighed softly. #He found out about your world and...#  
  
#His anger for Nazis burst?# Big Lockheed offered. When Little Lockheed nodded, he cursed softly, lifting up his head as he sniffed the air lightly. #It will not be easy calming him down you know.# he said.  
  
#We have to try and track him down for them at least.# Little Lockheed said. #We can't lose track of him!#  
  
#I agree.# Big Lockheed nodded. #I will scour the skies for any signs of him. When I do find him, I will come to the Lighthouse to show you where he is!# Little Lockheed flapped his wings, fluttering into the sky with a smile.  
  
#Thank you.#  
  
#We Dragons must stick together with our friends.# Big Lockheed shrugged, spreading his great wings and lifting into the sky with a single flap of them.  
  
Lockheed watched his doppelganger fly off before he sighed and turned to go back to the Lighthouse, wondering how Johanna was taking everything. ***  
"So you were forced to do those things?" Johanna asked slowly, tilting her head to one side. When her parents and Fay nodded, she bit her lower lip, looking at the ground for a moment.  
  
"But what about this." She said, holding out issue eleven. "Dad you tried to..."  
  
"Marvel likes to exasperate things." SkyElf sighed softly, looking at the poorly drawn picture of himself. "I never threw her on the bed. I pushed her up against the wall and what I WAS going to do was tell her to scream and act like I was raping her. Moira had told me to do it to get W.H.O. to listen to her demands. Like I said, I hated that bitch... No offense to you of course." He said, turning to Moira of Earth 616.  
  
"I jus' wish I could meet tha' bitch." Moira growled, narrowing her eyes slowly. "Ah'd show her a thin' or tae, if ye kin ken it!" SkyElf couldn't help but laugh softly as he shook his head.  
  
"What happened after you were sent back to your own world?" Johanna asked, wanting to stay on topic as much as possible.  
  
"Hauptmann Englande tried to blame me for our failure." StarPryde said. "But your foolish father took all the blame onto himself!" ***  
Kurt boarded the plane hurriedly, taking a window seat and sighing softly as he rested his head on the cold glass, his tail curling around his knees slowly as he got comfortable.  
  
He wanted to get as far away as possible from his parents and Excalibur. He needed time to think this out properly, and he figured going to New York City was the best answer since they would most likely think he would go to Bavaria or something to be with another Romani tribe.  
  
Ha! He wouldn't go anywhere near a tribe that would have a man like Nightcrawler, who accepted Nazis into a league that was supposed to protect life instead of gas and burn it!  
  
Johanna... She was a fool to stay behind and suggest actually listening to their parent's excuses for doing what they did! No wonder his father tried to give the Nazis excuses when he and Johanna were being home schooled about the Holocaust! The bastard was trying to defend his own actions against his own people!  
  
And then there was his mother. They had shaved her bald and humiliated her! And yet here she was; married to one of her tormentors like it was no big thing!  
  
His stomach clenched at the thought and Kurt frowned, resting a hand over it to try and make it still.  
  
He just needed to reach America.  
  
After that, he would be able to relax and think about everything properly. 


	6. 6

Everyone knows that a Dragon has keener senses than almost every animal in the world. So it was no real surprise for Big Lockheed to be able to find Kurt's scent once he reached the airport. Everyone there started to scream and run around as they watched a giant Dragon make a light landing, but Big Lockheed paid them no mind as he sniffed the air to try and get a bearing on where Kurt would have gone.  
  
Shrugging, he stuck as much of his body as he could into the terminal, following Kurt's scent right to the woman who had sold him the ticket. Before she could run off, Big Lockheed gently picked her up with one hand and he brought her outside so that he could hold her up to eye level.  
  
"Excuse me." He said, whispering so that he didn't destroy her eardrums. "I am looking for Kurt Wagner. Not the one known as Nightcrawler or SkyElf however. Do you happen to know where he is heading?"  
  
"He bought a one way ticket to New York City!" the woman said. "Please don't drop me!" she screamed, looking down at the ground in terror. Chuckling, Big Lockheed gently placed her back down on the ground.  
  
"Now what would be the point of that?" he asked, spreading his wings out slowly. With a single flap he was airborne and heading right for the Lighthouse.  
  
Unfortunately, the force of the wind that he had kicked up blew the airport terminal apart. ***  
A few hours later, Kurt found himself being checked by the airport security in New York City. Once he was cleared to leave, he converted his European money to American and then he headed for the city, hailing a cab on the way. ***  
Johanna listened to everything her parents had to say about their past and why they did what they did. When they were finally finished, she sat at the table, looking into her empty mug.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us this before?" she asked finally, raising her eyebrows slightly.  
  
"We wanted to." StarPryde said. "But we wanted to tell you both when you were eighteen, when you were old enough to understand these things. We never wanted to have you learn through these things!" she said, flicking issue ten of Excalibur with contempt.  
  
"The point is; we wanted to tell you the whole story." SkyElf finished, his tail swaying side to side lazily. "But it hasn't worked out that way and now Kurt has run off to Gott knows where."  
  
Lockheed looked up from his perch on Shadowcat's shoulder and he smiled, roaring to get their attention as he fluttered onto the window ledge.  
  
"What is it, Lockheed?" Shadowcat asked, walking up to see what he was doing. She gasped softly as Big Lockheed landed on the beach, folding his wings slowly as he headed towards the Lighthouse.  
  
"Did you send for him?" Brian asked Lockheed, cocking an eyebrow.  
  
"Yeah!" Lockheed nodded, flying down to meet his giant doppelganger.  
  
Big Lockheed waited calmly for all of Excalibur to show up, including Johanna who looked up at him in awe since he had never shown himself much.  
  
"It's been a long time since I've seen you two." Big Lockheed said, lowering his head to look at SkyElf and StarPryde. He smiled, showing that his fangs that had once been filed down were just as sharp as they once were.  
  
"You look better with hair, StarPryde." He said. "But that is not why I am here. I know where your son Kurt is going. He is on a plane heading for New York City.  
  
"I suggest not calling anyone that you may know there to warn them." He added, turning to face Moira calmly. "It won't do any good to make the boy feel like he is being hunted down like an animal by his Nazi parents now will it?  
  
"Perhaps sending your daughter to talk him would be best. Siblings tend to be able to talk better with each other.  
  
"There is one thing you must do if he does not want to come back, however." He added, lowering his head so that he was eye to eye with Johanna as much as possible.  
  
"What's that?" Johanna asked.  
  
"Don't try to force him to come back. If he doesn't want to go, let him stay there and leave him. Nothing will be gained by making him return to people he does not wish to return to. In time, he may wish to return on his own."  
  
"But what if he doesn't?" Brian asked, placing his hands on his hips. "What if your plan just makes things worse and Kurt never comes back here?" Big Lockheed looked over at him, and his eyes glittered knowingly.  
  
"Never is a long time, but it doesn't seem to ever last longer than a person's life." He said. "If it takes years for Kurt to return to SkyElf and StarPryde..."  
  
"Then so be it." SkyElf finished softly. Wrapping his tail around StarPryde's middle, he pulled her into a gentle hug.  
  
"We can't force our son to come back and try to understand everything." He said. "But we can hope for it." 


	7. 7

Since when did the problems in America get so bad?  
  
As the sixth door was slammed in his face, Kurt wondered why the hell people were refusing to rent him a room when they had advertisements in the papers for them!  
  
Growling softly, his tail flicked to one side as he walked down the steps of the building, crossing out another ad in the newspaper he had found on the ground. He scanned it over and circled a hopeful apartment ad, moving on.  
  
When he finally was able to rent himself an apartment, he went off to find himself a job next. ***  
StarPryde sat on a large boulder by the sea, looking out at the blue sky. She was hugging her knees to her chest, resting her chin between them.  
  
She didn't look up as SkyElf slowly sat down beside her, his tail curling slightly around her feet.  
  
Tilting his head slightly, SkyElf rested one arm on one knee as he leaned back slightly to look at his wife better.  
  
"Tell me what you're thinking about." He said softly, the tip of his tail thumping the ground lightly. StarPryde shrugged, still looking out at the sea.  
  
"Talk to me." He urged gently. "Please?"  
  
"We shouldn't have waited so long to tell them." She said finally. "Look at what we've done."  
  
"It will be all..."  
  
"Stop saying that!" StarPryde shouted, startling SkyElf into silence. "You keep saying that! It won't be all right in the end. I've lost my son, SkyElf! My son."  
  
"He's my son too." SkyElf said softly.  
  
"You're the one who drove him away! You don't have any right to call him your son anymore." StarPryde got up angrily, leaving a hurt SkyElf on the beach by himself. ***  
Kurt was cleaning out his new apartment, filling boxes with junk the last people had left behind. When he was finally finished, he started to make the apartment his own as he emptied his bags and placed things where he wanted to.  
  
He had filled out a lot of job applications beforehand and he figured that he would get a job at one of them. He had gone for everything, from a few fast food restaurants to being either a photographer's assistant or a teacher at a fencing school.  
  
His tail swayed lazily, curling and uncurling as he adjusted furniture and such to his liking.  
  
He cocked an eyebrow when he heard someone knocking on his door. When he opened it, he frowned a bit, his tail flicking to one side.  
  
"How did you find me?" he asked, glaring daggers at Johanna.  
  
"Big Lockheed flew me over." Johanna explained.  
  
"Big Lockheed?" Kurt asked, cocking an eyebrow. Johanna shook her head, shrugging a bit.  
  
"It's nothing important right now." She said. "Can I come in?" she asked. Shrugging, Kurt stepped back and let her in.  
  
"It's nice." She said, looking around the apartment.  
  
"I'm not going back there." Kurt said with his arms crossed over his chest.  
  
"Kurt, they told me everything that happened to them." Johanna said. "You must listen to me."  
  
"I don't want to hear their excuses." Kurt said. "I don't want to see either of them ever again."  
  
"Fine." Johanna said, heading for the door. "But the lighthouse will always be open to you, Kurt. Don't forget that."  
  
Kurt snorted, turning away from her.  
  
Sighing, Johanna closed the door behind her and walked down the stairs to leave. 


	8. 8

Author's Note: My knowledge of Judaism is very limited. All I know for sure is that there is the Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah, guys have sidelocks and wear yarmulkes, and that there's Hanukkah and Esther and Rosh Hananah and stuff. Sorry! ***  
  
Months had passed since Kurt left, and things were not going well for SkyElf and StarPryde. StarPryde blamed SkyElf for their son's leaving and they were always shouting and arguing about it. SkyElf slept on the couch now while StarPryde had the bed all to herself.  
  
SkyElf was still sleeping when Johanna came down. He snorted softly as she gently shook him awake and he moaned as he stretched out his arms and tail.  
  
"Dad?" Johanna asked. "Are you awake?"  
  
"I would hope so." SkyElf chuckled sleepily. "I mean you're shaking me and all!" Yawning, he scratched the top of his head, his tail taking care of the knot at the small of his back with light rubs.  
  
"What is it?" he asked. Johanna bit her lower lip slightly, looking down.  
  
"Are you and mom going to be ok?" she asked finally. SkyElf sighed softly, all playfulness gone.  
  
"I don't know." He admitted. "I hope so."  
  
"I don't think Kurt is ever going to come back." Johanna said.  
  
"Now why do you think that?" SkyElf asked gently, tilting his head to one side as his tail lightly wrapped around her wrist.  
  
"He was so angry when he left." Johanna said. "I don't think he'll come back to us ever."  
  
"That's his choice." SkyElf said. "We can't make him return."  
  
"Mom's going to leave isn't she?" Johanna asked.  
  
"Don't even think such things!" SkyElf said seriously. "This family will stick together through anything!" Johanna flinched and SkyElf instantly regretted yelling at her like that.  
  
"I'm sorry." He whispered. "Things have just been getting difficult. You know this as well as I do." Johanna nodded, and she buried her face in her father's chest in a tight hug. ***  
StarPryde was filled with a lot of pent up anger and the way she let it out was by practicing on the most extreme level in the training room.  
  
Leaping backwards, she spun two full circles before she threw two daggers at the robotic tiger that was snapping at her. The daggers each struck an eye and its head blew off before she landed in a crouch on the ground.  
  
She waited for a second before she started to run, metallic tentacles bursting out of the ground and flying at her, the tips buzzing with electricity. She turned and slid on the ground, drawing two more daggers as a tentacle got close to her.  
  
Screaming in anger and frustration, she hurled the dagger at the tentacle and from the tip down it slid through it like it was a hot knife through a stick of butter.  
  
As she got ready to keep fighting, the simulation suddenly died away, and she was just in an empty room again.  
  
"Who..?"  
  
"You've been working yourself ragged in here." Fay said, flying down slowly. StarPryde shrugged, brushing a strand of hair away from her face.  
  
"I need the practice."  
  
"Kitty, I'm an empathy." Fay said.  
  
"So?" StarPryde countered.  
  
"You're not in here to get in more practice and you know it." Fay said, sitting down on the floor. "You're angry with SkyElf and think it is his fault your son left the lighthouse and went to America."  
  
"Well wouldn't you?" StarPryde asked, fixing her ponytail and keeping her face away from Fay. "It was his idea to wait until they were eighteen."  
  
"We all agreed to it." Fay said. "Even you. If you wish to blame people for this, then all three of us, you, SkyElf, and me are to blame for Kurt's sudden departure. This was our secret."  
  
StarPryde poured some water on her face, shaking her head to get it off.  
  
"You're holding back your emotions, Kitty." Fay continued, not deterred by her silence. "You can't do that forever."  
  
"Who says I can't?" StarPryde demanded. "It's my life."  
  
"Hauptmann Englande had a lot of pent up frustrations too." Fay said softly. "That's why he was what he was." StarPryde cocked an eyebrow, looking at Fay in confusion.  
  
"What?" she asked. Fay nodded faintly, twirling a strand of her hair around one finger.  
  
"He was angry at a lot of people in his life. His sister was experimented and killed. His brother was shot for treason, and it was his father who gave both of those orders. He just didn't know how to deal with his emotions so he let them out on us all of the time."  
  
"Are you trying to say he wasn't evil?" StarPryde asked. Fay shook her head slowly.  
  
"No, I'm not. Hauptmann Englande may have had problems letting out his anger at the Reich for what they did to his family, but he enjoyed inflicting pain on others to make up for it. He was a sadist.  
  
"I'm not trying to say that you'll end up like him, Kitty." Fay said, looking at her with sparkling eyes. "But I'm just saying that you're better than him and that you shouldn't try to hold in your emotions like this. It will destroy you in the end." ***  
Excalibur had their own little private church where they could go and meditate and pray in privacy without mobs of people running up to get their autographs and such. They had made it a mix between a Christian church and a Synagogue. One half had everything that the Christian members would need; statues and candles and such, and the Jewish half had the Torah and everything that they needed.  
  
Nightcrawler was there now, his head tilted slightly upwards as he prayed quietly. He opened one eye slowly when he heard someone walk in, and he looked over his shoulder, watching SkyElf as he walked over to the Jewish half of the room.  
  
Quietly, SkyElf picked up his [i]Tallith[/i]; a fringed prayer shawl, and he placed it on his head before he started to recite the [i]Tefillah[/i]; the standing prayer. When he was finished with the [i]Tefillah[/i], SkyElf knelt down and he started to pray to God to help him and his family through these pressing times with his son and everything.  
  
Nightcrawler stood a few pews back from SkyElf, keeping his respective silence as he listened to the Hebrew words that his doppelganger whispered. He didn't know much Hebrew besides the few words Shadowcat had taught, (most of them being swears), but he could still guess what SkyElf was talking about.  
  
It really surprised him when he heard some of the words start to waver as SkyElf's shoulders started trembling. He had never seen SkyElf really sob until that morning. He had seen tears fall yes, but this was beyond just tears falling down his cheeks.  
  
SkyElf started to outright sob as he placed his head in his hands, still praying in Hebrew. When it got too much he reverted to his Romani tongue and Nightcrawler listened as he begged God to help him set things right with his son and make their family whole again. He was taking all of the blame for Kurt's departure.  
  
Unable to stand it anymore, Nightcrawler walked up slowly and he gently rested a hand on SkyElf's shoulder, not wishing to startle him too much.  
  
"Come on, SkyElf." He said in Romani gently. "I think you've done enough praying for one morning." Sniffling loudly, SkyElf raised his head slowly and he wiped his eyes with the back of one hand.  
  
"I didn't know anyone was in here." He whispered, standing up with Nightcrawler's help. "I feel like a fool now being caught like this." He laughed weakly, taking off his [i]Tallith[/i] and folding it with reverence before he put it away.  
  
"I heard that last bit of what you were praying for." Nightcrawler said. "Do you want to talk about it?" SkyElf looked at Nightcrawler and he nodded a bit, sitting down in one of the pews.  
  
"I think I have to after this little display, ja?" he laughed weakly.  
  
"You were blaming yourself for Kurt's departure." Nightcrawler pointed out, his tail swirling and curling lazily. "If it's anyone's fault; it's mine." He said. SkyElf cocked an eyebrow, looking at Nightcrawler in confusion.  
  
"How is it your fault?" he asked.  
  
"He found those comics in my room." Nightcrawler said. "I should have just thrown them out instead of saving them. I don't even know why I saved them really."  
  
"It's not your fault." SkyElf said. "You didn't know that he would react that strongly to it." Nightcrawler looked at SkyElf with knowing eyes, the corner of his mouth lifted in a faint smile.  
  
Realization came to SkyElf's face and he couldn't help but laugh at himself a bit, shaking his head.  
  
"Very clever, Nightcrawler." He said. Nightcrawler shrugged, getting to his feet.  
  
"I learned from the Professor how to do this." He said. "I'm getting a bit hungry, will you let me treat you to some IHOP*?" he offered, raising an eyebrow slightly. "We can talk more about this there if you want." SkyElf laughed softly, nodding as he followed Nightcrawler out of the church/synagogue.  
  
"Why not? I could use some IHOP anyway." He said.  
  
*mmmm IHOP.... 


	9. 9

StarPryde was lying in a field, sunning herself lazily with her eyes closed. Sighing, she sat up and she looked up at the sky, watching the clouds roll lazily by.  
  
She really wasn't surprised when she heard a familiar teleportation sound followed by the smell of brimstone behind her.  
  
"Hello, SkyElf." She said, smiling faintly. SkyElf sat down beside her, a bit of syrup still on the corner of his mouth from where he had missed with his napkin. StarPryde couldn't help but smile as she licked her finger and wiped the spot off herself.  
  
"IHOP?" she asked. SkyElf nodded, laughing softly.  
  
"Nightcrawler treated." He said. "We had a nice talk actually." He added, looking thoughtful about it.  
  
"Since when does Nightcrawler treat you to IHOP?" StarPryde laughed. "Everyone knows you eat everything in the breakfast section twice!" SkyElf shrugged, leaning back on his hands.  
  
"He offered after morning prayers." He said dismissively. "I didn't see you there by the way." He added with a sly smile.  
  
"I did morning prayer in our room." StarPryde said.  
  
"'Our room?'" SkyElf asked.  
  
"Yes, our room." StarPryde nodded. "What did you and Nightcrawler talk about?" she asked.  
  
"I think you know." SkyElf said gently.  
  
"Yes, I think I do too." She admitted, her cheeks turning bright red.  
  
"What did you do while I was away?" SkyElf asked, tilting his head to one side.  
  
"I trained." StarPryde said. "Until Fay came down that is. We talked for a long while after that."  
  
"What about?" SkyElf asked. StarPryde smiled, nudging him lightly.  
  
"I think you know." She said. SkyElf smiled, placing an arm around her shoulders and hugging her tightly. She couldn't help but giggle as he buried his furry face in the crook of her neck, his fur tickling her badly.  
  
"Have you forgiven me yet?" he asked. StarPryde pushed him back lightly, looking into his eyes. Smiling, she nodded and kissed the tip of his nose, making him wrinkle it playfully.  
  
"Yes." She said. 


	10. 10

All right...  
  
That is it!  
  
Kurt's last nerve that had been worn thin by the stupid people in his neighborhood was finally snapped when he was stopped walking back to his apartment from grocery shopping by a group of young hooligans who thought they would threaten the obvious mutant with their petty knives and guns.  
  
Never, ever, ever mess with someone who had Captain Britain to serve as a role model for self-control with morons.  
  
Because Captain Britain is just known throughout the world for having a strong tolerance of stupid people.  
  
Kurt's tail shot out, ripping a knife out of one youth's hand as he whipped it around, knocking another from another boy's hand. Crouching down low, he narrowed his eyes, his tail flicking like a snake ready to strike with the knife.  
  
"Try it." He warned softly. "Come on! I'm ready for you bastards now!" When they made a move to attack him all at once, he teleported away and punched two of them in the back of the head, knocking them onto their faces before their mates could respond quickly enough.  
  
Kurt lashed out wildly, using the martial arts Nightcrawler and his father had taken the time to teach to him. The knife he still held with his tail was forgotten as he used his feet and hands to deal out his blows, sending the boys running in terror in no time.  
  
Growling in his throat, Kurt bent down and picked up his things, ignoring the glances he got from people that walked past him. When everything was back in the bags, he turned and headed up the stairs to his apartment, the knife still held on by his twitching tail.  
  
Once inside his apartment, he flicked his tail once and sent the knife into the kitchen floor, its handle still trembling as he walked in to put his things away.  
  
This kind of thing wouldn't have happened back home at the lighthouse. Back over there Excalibur was actually appreciated for helping people through their problems. Here, the Avengers and Fantastic Four were cool because they were HUMAN. The X-men? Oh no, they're mutants, the most lowly things on Earth and they need to be controlled!  
  
It made him want to go back sometimes.  
  
No.  
  
Kurt growled and clenched his teeth, shaking his head firmly, his tail slashing through the air.  
  
He wasn't going back there. No ever!  
  
Even if he wanted to.  
  
Which he didn't!  
  
He had a good job in New York City; he was a teacher at a fencing school. The job paid decently, and there was no reason for him to go back to Excalibur and the lighthouse anyway...  
  
Right?  
  
"Why am I worrying about this?" he whispered, making himself some hot chocolate. "I'm not going back there. Even if I wanted to, I can't. Not after so many months like this! It's better to just stay here. So why am I still talking to myself?" Sighing, Kurt shook his head, stirring his hot chocolate slowly counter clockwise.  
  
He couldn't and he wouldn't go back there.  
  
So he didn't.  
  
It was as simple as that. 


	11. 11

Years had passed since Kurt left the lighthouse. During that time, members of the X-men and Excalibur came and went, and Johanna became Phaser of Excalibur when she turned twenty.  
  
The others had tried to make her pick a better name, but she insisted that she wanted to be called Phaser so the codename stuck.  
  
Kurt stayed in New York City, getting a license finally to run his own private school for fencing lessons. He was doing very well for himself, and he was able to rent a better apartment in a part of the city where he was harassed less by the young bigots of tomorrow.  
  
He was twenty-five, and not once did he ever send word or make any contact with the lighthouse or his parents, and they didn't either. ***  
Johanna was getting tired of the silence between her parents and Kurt. She just couldn't believe that he wouldn't want any word from his family asking how he was. When she pointed this out to her parents, they said that they didn't want to bother him in the life he had chosen.  
  
But they really did want him to come back to them. Or at least send a letter or something to show he still remembered them.  
  
The problem was that both sides were worried about angering the other by making some kind of contact with them.  
  
That changed when Johanna found that her father couldn't risk waiting until it was too late. ***  
Everyone gave Pete Wisdom and SkyElf lighthearted jabs that their smoking habits would give them lung cancer one day, and that they wouldn't be able to fight with them properly anymore.  
  
That was until SkyElf started to get really bad coughs, hacking up phlegm and blood sometimes.  
  
While looking over some routine yearly x-rays, Moira discovered something that she had missed for quite some time.  
  
A black spot at the bottom of SkyElf's right lung that had been slowly getting bigger and spreading along the edges of his lungs. 


	12. 12

SkyElf sat staring at Moira in disbelief, holding StarPryde and Johanna's hands tightly in his own.  
  
"You're joking, ja?" he asked. "To get me and Pete to quit smoking perhaps?" Sadly, Moira shook her head and StarPryde buried her face in SkyElf's neck and Johanna bowed her head, her hair covering her face.  
  
"Ah'm sorry." Moira sighed. "The bastard hid for a long toime."  
  
"Is there anything...to stop it?" SkyElf asked slowly.  
  
"We could try chemotherapy but..." Moira shrugged helplessly. "It's taken over a large part of your lower lungs with your right one getting the worst of it."  
  
Johanna ran out of the room. SkyElf and StarPryde watched helplessly until SkyElf had a sudden hacking attack, his body doubling over painfully as blood and spit hit the floor. ***  
Johanna went straight to Nightcrawler, tears still falling down her cheeks.  
  
"I need to borrow the jet." She said.  
  
"Where are you going?" Nightcrawler asked, all ready knowing the answer to that one.  
  
"Just let me borrow it." Johanna insisted.  
  
"Be careful flying to America." Nightcrawler advised. "Their government tends to get worried when mutants show a sign of any intelligence like their own."  
  
Nodding, Johanna phased down to the hanger and then into their jet. Trying to keep herself calm, she flipped a few switches and started the engines.  
  
Kurt was coming home; whether the son of a bitch wanted to or not. 


	13. 13

Kurt was in the bath, his eyes closed as he leaned his head back, with music filling the entire apartment gently. His tail hung over the side, swinging to and fro in time with the music. Everything in the apartment was calm and peaceful and he figured he could take a nap in the bath for a while before going out for supper.  
  
His peace and quiet was disturbed when he heard someone banging fiercely on his door.  
  
"Who can that be?" he muttered, getting out of the tub reluctantly. Growling softly to himself, he quickly rubbed himself dry and he wrapped the towel around his waist as he headed for the door.  
  
"I hear you!" he shouted, as the banging got louder and angrier. "Hold your..."  
  
Johanna phased through the door and became solid enough to slap him in the face without any warning.  
  
"What the hell!" Kurt shouted, taking a step back and rubbing his smarting cheek. "What are you doing here?" he demanded. "You could have at least warned me before you came through my door like that you know!"  
  
"You're coming home with me." Johanna said; her eyes narrowed dangerously. Kurt snorted, shaking his head and he turned around and headed for his bedroom to put on some clothes.  
  
"Is that the only reason why you came here?" he asked behind his door. "Well it seems you've wasted your time, dear sister! I'm not going back there." Johanna phased her head through the door, startling Kurt as he zipped his pants a little too fast and let out a short scream.  
  
"I hope it hurts like hell!" Johanna said, coming all the way through. "Why don't you want to come back? Are you still pissed because out parents wanted to wait until we were supposedly mature to handle what happened to them? Why can't you get over that?"  
  
"If they want to see me so bad, why don't they come here themselves?" Kurt shot back. "All they do is send you to give their stupid little messages!"  
  
"They've wanted to for a long time." Johanna said. "But they were too afraid that you would send them away in your stupidity and anger towards them!"  
  
"Get out of my apartment before I call the police." Kurt warned, his tail flicking side to side dangerously.  
  
"Dad taught me how to fight a lot longer than he did you since you left." Johanna said. "I could kick your ass all the way back to the lighthouse!"  
  
"Why did you come back here?" Kurt shouted in frustration. "Why do you bother me about our parents like this? I'm a man now and I have my own life. I don't need them anymore than they need me! So what's the point?" he asked. Johanna couldn't hold it back anymore and she burst into tears with clenched fists.  
  
"Because dad has lung cancer!" she shouted. "It started in his lower right lung and now it's all over his right and left lungs. Moira says that chemotherapy won't help him much and they can't cut it out because of how much it has taken over!" Kurt stared at her blankly, his tail falling limp.  
  
"What?" he asked numbly.  
  
"He's always having coughing fits." Johanna said. "He's always coughing up a lot of blood and weird looking phlegm. He's not doing good, Kurt. Not good at all!" Kurt sat down on his bed slowly, shaking his head.  
  
"You're lying." He said. "This is a trick to try and make me come back isn't it?" Johanna took out a folder and she handed it to him. Opening it, Kurt found x-rays of his father's chest. Holding them up to the light, he could see the large amounts of cancer in his lungs, and his eyes grew wide in horror.  
  
"We need to be together to deal with this." Johanna continued. "Come back with me." Putting the x-rays back, Kurt shook his head as he handed them back to Johanna.  
  
"I can't." he said simply.  
  
"Why not?" Johanna asked, her anger flaring up once more.  
  
"Because I can't go back after being gone for so long." Kurt said, looking at the ground. "They won't want me back there."  
  
"Kurt..."  
  
"Go back to the lighthouse, Johanna."  
  
"Listen to me!"  
  
"Father needs you to be with him!" Kurt shouted. "Now go back and leave me alone!"  
  
Looking at Kurt sadly, Johanna shook her head and she turned and left, leaving him alone in his room. 


	14. 14

Five months passed since SkyElf was diagnosed with lung cancer and Johanna went to try and bring Kurt back again. Over the course of those months, SkyElf tried chemotherapy, but all it really did was make his hair and fur fall out. When he started to lose his fur, he would shrug and laugh helplessly, holding out his bare arms to StarPryde.  
  
"My skin is the same shade of blue as Herr Worthington's!" he said.  
  
Pete Wisdom quit smoking after SkyElf's diagnosis, letting Lockheed destroy all of his packs and singles in his room. He tried to get SkyElf to quit smoking too, but the man just shook his head, a newly lit cigarette in the corner of his mouth.  
  
"What would be the point?" he had asked, cocking an eyebrow slightly. "I'm all ready dying from it. Quitting now won't save me now will it, Pete?" ***  
Kurt was in his own private hell back in the States. He stayed in his apartment when he was teaching lessons, and he had emptied a lot of bottles of wine those five months.  
  
At the moment he was lying on his couch, an arm over his eyes as he talked to himself; a practice that had become more frequent since Johanna left him after telling him about his father's illness.  
  
"I can't go back." He whispered softly, his tail thumping the floor lightly. "They don't want me back there anyway? And why should they want me back?" Sitting up, Kurt rested his head on his drawn up knees.  
  
"I left them for years without any messages now didn't I? If my kid did that to me, I wouldn't want them calling me back anytime soon either! How hell!" Getting off of the couch, Kurt went to the kitchen to get another bottle of wine.  
  
"Why am I just in here talking about this?" he wondered. "I should be on a plane going back to see my father! My father...he should have told us that before we found those comics! What did he expect me to think anyway? I'm not a goddamn telepath like Jean or an empath like Fay and Meggan!  
  
"I wonder how he's doing? Mother always told him to quit smoking! Why the hell didn't he listen to her?" When his search for wine was unsuccessful, he took out a can of grape soda instead and opened it with his tail as his mind continued to work everything out.  
  
"I'm not going back to the lighthouse." He said finally. "They don't want me there, and I don't want to be there either. Not after so long without a message or anything! There's no way they'll take me back! None!"  
  
Kurt was sitting at his kitchen table when a memory suddenly came to him. It was a time when their mother was teaching him and Johanna in religion class. She was telling them stories with important lessons, and she had just finished the one about the son who squandered all of his father's money and stayed away in shame before he went back and was met with great rejoicing from his father. ***  
"And do you know what the moral of the story is?" StarPryde had asked, smiling at her two little ones.  
  
"That spending money is ok?" Kurt had tried. StarPryde laughed, shaking her head as she wiped her eye slowly.  
  
"No, that's not the lesson, honey." She said. "What about you, Johanna?"  
  
"I don't know." Johanna said, shrugging helplessly.  
  
"The moral of the story is that no matter what; parents will always take back their children." StarPryde said. "Because we love them too much." She added with a smile.  
  
"Even if we do something really bad?" Kurt asked.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Like runaway?"  
  
"Yes, Kurt."  
  
"Or throw rocks at a cat?"  
  
"Why would you do that?" Kurt shrugged.  
  
"I was just asking..." he said. Smiling, StarPryde hugged both of her children tightly, kissing them each on the brow.  
  
"Your father and I will love you no matter what you do." She said. "No matter what bad thing has happened, you can always believe that we will take you back." ***  
No matter what bad thing has happened, you can always believe that we will take you back...  
  
Kurt hoped she still remembered that promise she had made that day. ***  
Kurt sent letters to all of the parents of his students, telling them that he was shutting down his school for good, and he gave them some advertisements so other good fencing schools.  
  
He backed his bags slowly, taking everything that he wanted to take with him. He had ordered a one-way flight ticket back to England, and his flight would be leaving in fours hours.  
  
He wanted to be ready beforehand anyway; his excitement was just too much for him.  
  
When everything was ready, he finally sat down and he rested a bit, leaning back and closing his eyes with a smile.  
  
Kurt was going home. 


	15. 15

Big Lockheed had been keeping a lookout for any signs of Kurt returning to England. The giant doppelganger to Little Lockheed was often seen flying the skies, his eyes scanning all over the place, his nostrils flaring as he tried to sniff out Kurt's scent.  
  
This day, the scent came to him while he was resting in a park. Lifting his head, he took a great big sniff and he could smell Kurt mixed with the scents with others who were on a plane. Smiling, he spread his great big wings and he flew off to the airport, wanting to be the first to greet him back home. ***  
Kurt thought that the Lockheed he had known had gone through a huge growth spurt since he was away. The people who worked at the airport didn't seem too worried about Big Lockheed anymore, since the dragon had come back and helped fix their building after accidentally knocking it down that one time.  
  
"Um, Lockheed?" Kurt tried, cocking an eyebrow slightly.  
  
"Yes?" Big Lockheed asked.  
  
"How did you get so big so fast?" he asked in surprise. Big Lockheed chuckled and shook his head as he took Kurt's bags and hooked them onto one of his back spikes for safe keeping during the flight to the lighthouse.  
  
"I am not THAT Lockheed." He explained. "I'm the one who used to run Reichminister Moira's train. Remember?" he asked. Kurt couldn't help but blush slightly at the reminder of those three comics that had caused most of the problems to begin with for the family.  
  
"Don't worry about that." Big Lockheed said, bending down so that Kurt could climb onto his back. "I'm sure they'll be very pleased by this surprise! Now hold on tight!" Without any further warning, Big Lockheed flew off with a surprised and slightly terrified Kurt riding on his back. ***  
SkyElf was outside, smiling faintly as he tilted his head up, the cool sea breeze cooling his face. Little Lockheed fluttered up and landed on his shoulder, cooing softly as he tilted his head to one side.  
  
"Nice breeze blowing in from the sea." SkyElf said. "Makes it easier to glide doesn't it?" he asked, smiling at Little Lockheed. Smiling, Lockheed nodded and spread out his wings, which instantly caught the wind and he was blown upwards at once. The dragon glided over SkyElf's head three times before he saw something in the distance. With a confused coo, he started to fly towards it.  
  
"I wonder what got his attention?" SkyElf asked, before he turned and headed back to the lighthouse, his tail swishing side to side slowly. ***  
Little Lockheed flew right at Big Lockheed and when he saw who was riding him, he immediately pounced on Kurt, making him laugh as the two hugged a bit.  
  
"I missed you too, Lockheed!" he said. "How is my father doing?" Little Lockheed shrugged a bit, climbing onto his shoulder to rest.  
  
"Ok I guess." He said. "'e 'as no fur anymore." He added.  
  
"Chemotherapy?" Kurt asked. When Little Lockheed nodded, he sighed softly, guilt coming back to him. "I should have been here." He said.  
  
"There is no time for regrets." Big Lockheed said. "Put the past behind you and look into the present and not the future! That is how it should be done!" Laughing, Big Lockheed went into a dive towards the lighthouse, making Kurt grab onto his scales tightly lest he fall off.  
  
Just when Kurt thought that they would be dashed upon the ground, Big Lockheed spread out his wings and their descent became slow and controlled once more. He landed easily on all fours, he and Little Lockheed laughed at the shocked look on Kurt's face.  
  
"How do you feel?" Big Lockheed asked, helping him down.  
  
"I think I'm going to throw up." Kurt said. "Why did you do that?" he asked. Big Lockheed shrugged a bit, winking at him.  
  
"Think of it as punishment for waiting so long to come back here!" he said simply. "Now go on up there! I'm sure your parents will want to see you!"  
  
Picking up his bags with some help from Little Lockheed, Kurt headed for the lighthouse. 


	16. 16

Nightcrawler had gone outside to see what Big Lockheed had flown over for. When he saw an older Kurt walking towards him with bags he stopped and raised his eyebrows in surprise. When Kurt noticed him, he smiled faintly and raised a hand in greeting.  
  
"Have you come back for good or a visit?" Nightcrawler asked, clasping hands with a smile.  
  
"I'm here for good." Kurt said. "That is, if you'll take me back." He added. Nightcrawler placed an arm around Kurt's shoulders, smiling kindly at him.  
  
"You were always welcomed here." He said. Kurt smiled faintly, his tail curling slightly.  
  
"Do you know where they are?" Kurt asked.  
  
"Your mother is in the training room." Nightcrawler said. "Your father is in the med lab."  
  
"Thanks!" Kurt said before he teleported into his room.  
  
Since he left the lighthouse his room was left unused. Sighing softly, he put his bags down and he closed his eyes, teleporting into the control room of the training room.  
  
Fay looked at him in surprise before she smiled and hugged him tightly.  
  
"You came back!" she said. "Your mother will be so happy!" She reached out to flip the intercom on when Kurt stilled her hand.  
  
"I want to surprise her." He explained, picking up a steel quarterstaff. Smiling, Fay nodded. ***  
StarPryde was fighting a few low-level robots armed with sabers. She ran swiftly, her daggers destroying robots swiftly. When one of her daggers got stuck, it slowed her down and two robots were about to take advantage of the situation.  
  
In a purple cloud, Kurt appeared and knocked them away, crouching in front of his mother with a smile.  
  
"Computer! Terminate program!" StarPryde said. When Kurt didn't vanish, her eyes grew wide. Kurt stood up, his tail swishing slowly.  
  
"I've missed you." He said softly. StarPryde rested a hand on his cheek, looking into his eyes.  
  
"It's really you..."  
  
"Yes, it's me, mom." He nodded. The two embraced tightly, Kurt burying her face in his mother's hair.  
  
"I'm so sorry." He said. "I shouldn't have run off like that!" Looking up at Kurt, StarPryde smiled and brushed a strand of hair away from his eyes.  
  
"We were always hoping that you would come back to us!" she said. "And your father!" Kurt's cheeks burned violet.  
  
"I'm almost afraid to see him." He said.  
  
"Nonsense! He's been praying for you to come back! Come on!" ***  
SkyElf hated his medication. It tasted like shit and left a chalky texture in his mouth. Plus, Moira forced him to take them everyday. She was a tough Scottish bitch that one.  
  
He was thinking this while she was taking a blood sample. When she was finished, he slid off the table and rubbed his arm a bit, his tail flicking to one side sharply.  
  
"Dinnae glare at me." Moira said. "You did this tae yerself!" Rolling his eyes, SkyElf headed for the door, mumbling a few foul German words.  
  
"You forgot your pills." Moira said, holding them out.  
  
"Danke." He growled, snatching them with his tail. He teleported into his room, fighting the urge to throw his pills away when he reappeared. He placed them on his counter instead before he changed his clothes. He always did after one of his check-ups. He said it was because they smelled like death afterwards.  
  
Sneakily, SkyElf took out a cigarette and a match. He was forced to sneak them now, since everyone yelled at him. He went outside, heading for some boulders to rest on and smoke in peace.  
  
With his eyes closed, SkyElf took a long drag, tilting his head back when he exhaled. He tail thumped the boulder lightly.  
  
"You shouldn't be smoking!"  
  
His eye snapped open.  
  
He knew that voice.  
  
Flicking his cigarette away, SkyElf stood up and he turned around.  
  
"Kurt..."  
  
Looking at his father, Kurt couldn't help but get upset. He remembered his father as a strong man with good muscles. This man looked weak and his muscles were gone; wasted away by the chemotherapy and stress. When his father smiled at him, he burst into tears.  
  
SkyElf walked up to embrace him and Kurt fell onto his knees, tears falling as his father hugged him.  
  
"It's all right." SkyElf whispered, stroking Kurt's head gently. "Kurt..." SkyElf wiped his son's tears away gently, tilting his head up to meet his eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry..." Kurt whispered. SkyElf smiled slowly, his tail swaying side to side lazily.  
  
"Let us kill the fattest and most prized calf." He said. "And hold a great feast, for my son has come back to me after his long wanderings in the world."  
  
The End (I mean it this time!) 


End file.
